Mich. professor's YouTube course is just right for many

Jan. 1, 2013
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by David Jesse, Detroit Free Press

by David Jesse, Detroit Free Press

DETROIT -- Many universities host large online courses that feature a professor lecturing and guiding students through courses they regularly teach in person. However, University of Michigan professor Andrew Maynard's online education approach is geared toward people interested in a little bit of information on a certain topic, not an entire university course.

In Maynard's offerings, a hand, marker and whiteboard appear on the screen.

The hand begins to sketch a stick figure with a stocking hat on top.

A voice-over asks a provocative question: "Does wearing a hat keep you warm while dancing naked?"

That video, posted in late December, explores whether wearing a hat keeps you warm. It's also part of Maynard's effort to combine serious teaching with YouTube.

"Something that has intrigued me is the rise of YouTube as an educational platform," he said.

About six months ago, Maynard started experimenting by posting a simple video on a topic he knows a lot about - risk science.

"What does intrigue me here is that not only is there a lot of cool science behind how we understand and address things that potentially affect our health, but that understanding and reducing risks to ourselves is something that everyone has a stake in," Maynard said. "And in many ways, it's odd that there isn't more information widely available on how to make smart decisions on risk that are based on science rather than guesswork."

All the short videos - there are 17 so far - follow the same basic format and feature Maynard's hand and voice, but never the rest of him.

"I've watched myself a few times," he said. "I'm absolutely awful speaking directly to the camera."

The videos include topics on "Are the Olympics bad for your health?" and "Could eating chocolate get you a Nobel Prize?" The most watched is "Tofurkey, tryptophan and Thanksgiving Torpor" with 3,262 views.

"There's a real hunger out there for science-based information," Maynard said. "If we're going to communicate effectively, we're going to have to give people information in small and short bites."

And Maynard said he thinks university professors are well-positioned to provide that information.

"People who are looking for information are looking for how much can they trust what they are being told," he said, adding that professors and other scientists have credentials that add legitimacy.

The videos haven't drawn a lot of reaction online, but one viewer with the screen name Ben Roberts noted he liked the way Maynard broke down a complex topic.

"I feel like I could show this video to my mom and she would finally understand what I am studying," Roberts posted in an online comment on a video titled "What is Environmental Health Science, and why should you care?"